


Unknown Contract

by Siera_Knightwalker



Category: Kaze no Stigma
Genre: Ayano is awestruck, Contractors, F/M, Kazuma is confused, OC is sad, OC loves Kazuma, Oc is badass, and surprised
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-18
Updated: 2018-06-08
Packaged: 2019-04-24 16:32:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,601
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14359308
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Siera_Knightwalker/pseuds/Siera_Knightwalker
Summary: Kyoko Kanagi is not taking 'no' for an answer. With an apparent connection to Kazuma that he cannot remember, she grieves and desires. With a lost love, she perseveres the find meaning with her existence.





	1. Rescue mission

"You're here I see." The head of the Kanagi family spoke quietly. He knew that a great danger was coming soon and they had need of her powers. He didn't want her to be revealed as she was akin to their clan's secret weapon but they would need all the help they could get. And he had delayed their meeting enough.

"What do you need of me?" A feminine voice came from the shadows of the room. Her voice was soft and had a whispery quality. Though she was officially a member of their family, she was mostly uninvolved in their family matters. She did as was asked and in return she was left out of any family problems. That was their deal.

"Protect them. If needed, you can reveal yourself. But only if you have no other option. They might need you more in the future." He could almost feel her glare.

"I'm not a replacement for those slaves of yours. You can't tell me to stay hidden."

"Still acting so hostile, I see. Is it still about Kazuma?"

She opened her eyes and stepped into the light of the room. Her dark hair shone against her exposed skin. A collar-like cloth covered the bottom half of her face but her voice remained unrestricted. Her top- or what seemed like one- ended just below her full breasts. The sleeves of her top were non-existent; in fact, they curved inward to exposed more of her skin. The cloth from the sides of her breasts extended to meet what seemed like sleeves that fully covered the rest of her arms leaving her shoulders bare. She wore loose pants as bottom. But only because he explicitly requested her to be wearing proper pants. She seemed to defy every order given to her, as much as she could. Unlike what people thought, she could fight in those clothes. "Not hostile. And you know this, it was always about him."

He sighed. She really was stubborn. But then again, so was their whole clan. "He probably doesn't even remember you. And even if he does, you're very different now. He's mending his relationship with his family now." For a moment, she looked at him stoically before smirking in amusement.

"You just want him to fall in love with Ayano." He didn't deny it. His wind magic was very strong after all.

"I believe she would bring him closer to our family, and he would mature Ayano." Ayano was stubbornly naïve. She was protected by the family and in turn, she sought to protect them all. She was an idealist by heart.

"If that is all you desire, I can help them in the open better than hiding from them." She almost seemed hopeful.

"Are you sure you wish to reveal yourself after so long in hiding?" She pouted in response.

"I was training! Not hiding. And I'm still doing the jobs you tell me to, don't I?" He laughed at her expression. She was so bi-polar sometimes.

"You should go now. They'll be reaching the site soon." She silently opened the door.

"He really wanted to save Ren, you know? He still would have gone after him if you hadn't paid him. But thank you for making it easier."  
"I wonder what he would do if he knew you now." She laughed softly in response.  
"He'd be very angry at me."

"Go Kyoko." This was the reason why she was called back home. And it wasn't like he could stop her, now that she knew. The door opened and without a sound, she disappeared into the night.

Even as Kyoko travelled fast, she knew she wouldn't arrive on time. And honestly, she didn't want to. She had been brought back home from Russia because Kazuma was back. She had known him before and she was very familiar with his aura. She was sure she could pin-point it almost anywhere, and she had. She was also the one who had told her 'father' of his presence in the compound and he had immediately rushed to his location, giving her enough time to control her reaction and hide.

She had been very amused by Ayano's actions. As if Kazuma would kill anyone from the Kanagi family. She wouldn't, and she had spent a lot of time with them. After Kazuma kicked out, she too left. She respected their goal but she had no intention of following their traditions. So, she made a deal, and left.

Kyoko was distracted from her thoughts by the sight of Ayano lying on the ground. She immediately stopped flying. Ayano was unconscious and there were a few cuts and bruises on her face. Her breathing slowed down and she felt the wind pick up. That was when she noticed the miasma under her skin. She almost flinched at the sight. Her eyes hardened at the sight. She loosened Ayano's tie to expose her throat.

"Get away from her!" Ren's voice sounded just before she jumped away with Ayano. She looked back at the scorched area with a little amusement. Two figures landed on the ground and she looked at them even when she knew who they were. She stood up and saw Kazuma looking her over. She carefully controlled her reaction before turning her face to Ren. Ren on the other hand, looked at her doubtfully.

"Kyoko-nee?" She flicked his forehead at his disbelief.

"You're late. What have you been up to, sleeping beauty?" He pouted and rubbed his forehead in response. He softly mumbled something about not sleeping but being sacrificed to a demon.

"You're a Kanagi?" Kazuma seemed more amused than doubtful.

"Yup, and here to save the day." She struck a pose and smirked at him. Their introductions were interrupted by Ren's worried voice.

"Why isn't she waking up? Her wounds are not serious." She turned a little serious.

"It's the miasma from his aura. Its very strong. It went into her body and is destroying it from the inside." Ren turned his big worried eyes at them.

"Can you help her somehow?" She turned to Kazuma too. She had a way to save her but she really wanted to hear him first. He sighed.

"Yeah, but the stuff's really expensive." He took out a vial with a golden coloured liquid inside it. "I don't really know if I should." Flames burst from Ren's body and he threateningly asked for the vial.

"Flames of Honest Anger." So beautiful.

Just before Kazuma was about to agree, she put her hand on Ren's head.

"Don't be such a hot head, kid. I'm here too, you know? You don't need the elixir for this." She saw Ren's eyes go round when he understood exactly what he was demanding. He looked at Kazuma and then at the vial. "Leave it to me."

She turned back and tuned out Ren and Kazuma. She sat beside Ayano before gently opening her mouth. She opened hers and felt the heat of a flame inside her mouth. She put her lips on Ayano's and exhaled the steam. The divine flame and the purifying golden flame worked well with each other. The divine flame was blessing and healing Ayano's body, while the purifying flame burnt the miasma. She slid her hand to Ayano's throat and felt her body heat up. When her pulse returned to normal, she pulled away and sat back. When she sighed, a puff of steam went out as well. She turned back to see Kazuma looking slightly impressed but Ren's face was red in embarrassment.

"She'll wake up later. We have work to do, now."

"You want to leave her here?" Kazuma glanced at Ayano before looking at her. She almost started teasing him before she sighed. She didn't want to revert back to her old ways. It would be embarrassing after she worked so hard to create a good impression.

"Yeah yeah. Don't be such a nag." She waved his concern and amusement away. She almost felt him get annoyed. He had always hated being called a 'nag'.

"He's not a nag! He's concerned about her." Ren came to his rescue with his hero worship.

"I'm not concerned, kid. She's supposed to be a part of the mission. I need to complete it or I don't get paid." Kazuma seemed really annoyed to be repeating the same things over and over again.

"Yeah. And its not like he can just threaten the clan head, can he?" She teased Ren but by then, he was reduced to tears.

"Its okay. She'll be fine. After all, its Ayano." She smiled at him.

Ren seemed slightly reassured at that. Kyoko bumped her head with Ren lightly before she turned her attention to the watching Kazuma. He simply pulled them both towards him and flew off. She 'eep'ed silently before blushing a little. She really hoped neither of them noticed. She felt Kazuma's eye on her face and her blush darkened. So much for wishful thinking. But for some reason, she felt almost comfortable flying inside a tornado-like thing with Kazuma and Ren.

"Look." Kazuma flew right above him. They soon noticed the affect his miasma had on the ground and dropped Ren to deal with the spirits, while they went to attack the demon.

"You were there when I came to the main house. I sensed your presence. Who are you?" Kazuma's voice was quiet and he looked slightly troubled.

"An old friend. We were friends before." She smiled sadly at him.

"I didn't have friends. At least I didn't remember any." She looked away at that and breathed in and out. She knew he didn't remember her, but it still hurt. He was her only friend, after all. It was normal that she felt hurt.

"We'll talk later. We've got a demon to deal with." Kazuma silently agreed and threw a few wind blades. He stopped and turned around to face them. It was pitiful. A human to willingly take on evil spirits and host a demon…

As soon as they landed, she formed the golden flame around her before she went in close. Hand to hand combat was her forte. Her fire was her long distance ability. She had to be good. After all, she had been training for years. She felt a few wind blades attack her. He defended against them with his aura and hands.

Thick skin.

She noted it before her flames formed balls around her and attacked. She punched his arms and used divine flame in a burst. He was barely pushed back. She gave a roundhouse kick to his head that made his head wrench back before he caught her leg and threw her in the other direction. She almost fell but Kazuma caught her. She looked back at him before narrowing her eyes. He might need more of her effort. She hissed slightly when she took a step. She quickly tore the bottom of her pants and glared at the demon. His aura was affecting her. The purifying flame sprung up from her leg, burning away at the miasma. She could heal later, properly. She looked up just in time to see the ground burst. His evil aura was expanding and little tornados were forming around him. She felt her eye twitch with irritation. So annoying. But his miasma was the most troublesome thing.

"Can you do something about that miasma? Its affecting me too much." She almost growled out the last part. He formed a wind tunnel that kept out his evil aura and the tunnel led straight to him. She didn't need to purify his aura so she released divine flame as she ran. The flame surrounded her hand and she punched his face and concentrated the flame to burn his face. Suddenly her flame stopped and she had to jump back. Kazuma meanwhile made a huge tornado of his own. She thought he was going to dissipate the evil aura with it somehow but instead his tornado somehow conducted lightening. She was almost gaping at him then. The lightening struck the demon and she stumbled back. The light got really harsh. She felt slightly dizzy but she blinked it back. She held her hand in pain. She wasn't sure why but her hand was starting to hurt. As soon as the lightening dissipated, she noticed the wind forming a protective shield around her. It too dissipated and she ran towards the demon. Her divine flame would have to do. The flames burst into existence around her and she expended her hand and blasted a concentrated blast right to his face. He was pushed back and without the evil spirits, he wasn't as protected from it. His face was half burnt away and he growled in anger. She took a few steps away from it, to take a breather.

"Kyoko! Just hold him off as much as you can. Buy me some time." Kazuma seemed really confident that what he was planning to do would work. She would have said that she could handle it on her own, but she felt really dizzy and weak. She steeled her expression and attacked the demon. Kazuma asked her to buy him time. And time he would get.

She formed balls of divine flame all around her and kept up furiously attacking him. His aura was regenerating fast but the divine flame would keep it at bay and damage him. He was more vulnerable now. She dived into the attacking when he stumbled back. This was her chance. She extended divine flame from her hand as a blade and used it to cut him. His skin wasn't as tough to the divine flame, but more over, she was also vulnerable to his aura. It wouldn't end well for her if she lost consciousness. She dove her hand straight though his shoulder. He used his other hand to slap her back. His physical strength was much more than hers. She stumbled back and exhaled sharply. She used her aura to strengthen her divine flame and used it as an area affected attack. He was very much scorched and crispy but not yet dead. And worse, his aura was regenerating. Again!

She almost growled out at that. She started panting. Her body was starting to hurt now. She exhaled sharply. It didn't matter now. She didn't have enough time to pull out her big attacks and she just had to buy time. She didn't know how much more time he needed. She stood up properly. No matter what, she was a Kanagi. She wouldn't let a measly demon kill her so stupidly.

"Well done." A wind brought his voice to her and soon Kazuma himself appeared behind her. She almost fell back against his chest in relief. He was done. She wouldn't be giving out any big attacks anytime soon. She looked up and her eyes widened.

"Your eyes. What happened?" She knew what this meant. She had heard the rumour but she wasn't sure if it was true.

"The spirit king of the wind marked me as the contractor." Her eyes became wide. He didn't want to keep it hidden, then? But the wind. She then gave him a smile.

"I'm glad. You're strong now." His eyes widened. She wasn't shocked or scared. She was really glad for him but more than that, the words resonated inside him. Yes, he was strong now. Strong enough to defend people he loved. To defend Ren. That was when he became sure. She had known him before and they had been friends. She seemed so happy on his behalf. His eyes softened. He looked up.

"Now, time to go back to hell, where you belong." He glared at the demon. She realized he still had his hand on her waist but she did nothing. She turned back to the creature. The demon needed to be purified. Her thoughts were distracted by the tornado around them. The wind became stronger. So strong that she was sure, if she put her hand in it, it would be tore away. It was very strong. The power depended on the will power of the contacted to control the spirits. He was very good. And very strong. Maybe as strong as her or stronger. She wasn't sure.

Mini-tornados extended from theirs to surround him. He formed one with his evil aura but two ore formed and they crushed him in between. For a moment she observed this before she realized what was happening. The wind was purifying him. That was when she realized how pure the wind felt to her. It seemed to soothe her pain.

"Its working." She turned her gaze to him when she felt his hand on hers. He lightly squeezed her hand.

"Kyoko. Purify him." She stepped away from him and her divine flame formed in one hand and the purifying flame in the other. She ran towards the demon as the flames formed into huge blades around her hand. She simultaneously put her hands though his head and his neck. The flames went inside him and he- well, to put it simply- burst. A beautiful purifying wind blew from below and the rest of him got purified and was sucked up into the sky. Her hair blew up and she looked up and relaxed. The wind was beautiful.

She turned around when she heard a 'thump'. Her alarmed eyes found Kazuma lying on the ground. She quickly went to him, worried.

"You okay?"

"Yeah. Just a little tired." She smiled at him.

"You were ready before you came, weren't you?" He opened his eyes and looked a little sheepish. "If you just wanted to see what I could do, you could have just asked, you know? I wouldn't have minded." He looked a little doubtful. Her eyebrow twitched. "Did you just compare me to Ayano? I'd like to tell you I'm nothing like that. You're not an enemy, so its fine. When were you really ready?"

"Around the time when you injured him." She sat down beside him with a huff.

"Then you saw me being weak instead of strong." She winced and held her hand. Her eyes met Kazuma's before finally passed out.


	2. Blame

Kyoko was very uncertain. She had declined the invitation to the lunch to celebrate how awesomely they had completed their mission. Ayano went, but she didn't. She honestly didn't want to sit there and listen to them chatter about what a disgrace the Fuga Clan was. Fucking hypocrites, all of them. She instead just sat on the roof of one of their houses, reminiscing about what happened after the fight. She lightly touched her lips and blushed. She had been knocked out because his aura had affected her too much. One of her sleeves were ripped off and she had seen the darkened skin that was slowly healing at a very fast rate. She was surprised she hadn't been beyond help then. It had been a silly mistake on her part. She should have kept her body surrounded by flames at all times while she fought. No wonder Kazuma always kept his distance from the demon.

Kazuma had given her the elixir. Well, more like made her drink it through his mouth. She remembered what she did when she woke up. She couldn't believe herself, though. She had sighed softly before the pressed her lips closer to his before opening her eyes lazily. Her brain had been fuzzy with sleep or something (she refused to think what that something was). Then she had pulled back with hooded eyes and licked her lips. Though she mentally gave the excuse of licking the elixir that was dripping down her lips. That was when Ren had hesitantly called her name. She had blinked a few times before realizing her position. She had literally jumped away from Kazuma's arms before apologizing like hell. Her face had been tomato red and she had seen Kazuma's slightly shocked but very much amused face before she made an excuse about checking up on Ayano and ran the hell away.

It had been the most embarrassing thing she had ever done. She was 19, for God's sake! Its not like she hadn't slept with anyo… shit! Why was she thinking about sleeping with him? He was hot and all but he… wow. Just wow. Her mind was betraying her now. She sighed heavily before flopping back on the roof. She at least had something decent on now. While she was running to check up on Ayano, she had seen her clothes. There was a rip on the bottom of her top that exposed her bra and one on the top that had torn away the collar and exposed the side of her neck. Her pants were very damaged and slightly burned but most of it had survived in one piece. Her stomach had a few cuts and dirt stuck on it, but otherwise she was fine.

She had checked up on Ayano and woke her up. She had 'flash jumped' to the main house to drop Ayano and check up on their wounds. 'Flash jumping' meaning she used fire to super speed herself to her destination. She also called 'flash step', which basically meant she could transport herself from an area of extreme heat to another area of extreme heat. Basically, teleporting from one fire to another. But they were both stressful in its own way. First one, she had to be careful about being too fast and slamming into stuff. Thankfully, she had gotten over that. The second one had the problem that she needed to know her next destination. That she had helped by using her sensing skill to find area of high temperature easily.

After dropping Ayano, she had changed into clothes that were decent enough to make Jugo Kanagi sigh in relief. While everyone rested, she had taken it upon herself to fill him in on what she had done. She had hesitated in telling him about Kazuma being a contractor but apparently, Jugo had already guessed it. She was sure Kazuma would fill in any details she didn't know- if he wanted to- when he came to collect his money. She had wanted to ask him something. That elixir he had brought. It was for Ren, if he didn't reach in time. It would have cured Ren of his injuries. All Kazuma would have to do was make sure he was alive and his soul was intact.

She suddenly sat up when she felt Kazuma's presence in the compound. She hadn't known he had been invited to lunch too. She would have followed him, but she had a feeling Kazuma wouldn't take kindly to her following him around. When he went inside the main house, she waited a little following. She was kind of curious why he was here. She heard-

"BACK OFF, YOU PERVERT!" She would have been amused if she wasn't so surprised. Ayano really didn't like Kazuma sometimes. Or maybe she was jealous? "No way. I wont let you touch her. So you're gonna have to find someone else!" Then there was a more whispered but no less furious, "Whats wrong with you, Misao? Have a little self-respect. Don't ingrate yourself for worthless scumbag like him."

"Nice to hear you have such a high opinion of me, princess." Kazuma just sounded amused.

"Thank you, but you really don't have to be so protective of me, Ayano. I'm offering myself to Kazuma to thank him for putting an end to the Fuga clan's uprising. We wouldn't be alive if it weren't for him. And he took revenge for the death of my brother. I'm willing to do anything to repay him for that." Misao sounded nice and soft but there was an undertone to her voice. She was lying.

"He's already been paid with money, so believe me, he's just fine. A simple 'thank you' would be good enough." This time she was amused at Ayano. Ayano was so naïve. The thanking would generally be an excuse to get into the man's bed. But of course that was not the case here. Misao didn't like Kazuma.

"You shouldn't thank me. Doesn't really make much sense. I mean, what do you have to be grateful for? After all, I'm responsible for your brother's death." Kazuma was still amused but this time there was an underlining guilt too. Not guilt exactly, more like blaming himself. He said it like a fact, and it was. He was to blame for Misao's brother's death because he had weakened Takeya, and she knew he didn't regret it. He just carried the blame of taking a life when he would have done nothing to change it. It was a very slight difference in his voice that generally no one would detect but it was there. After all, she heard it in her voice too. There was a small gasp from Misao.

"What did you just say?" Ayano now sounded slightly confused and angry.

"Ryuya killed him but I definitely made it easier to do. If I hadn't knocked Taki unconscious. Ryuya might not have been able to pick him off so quickly. Of course, even when he was conscious, he was no match for Ryuya." He stood up. "Anyway, I understand if you want to blame me, so you can-"

She slammed the door open and ruined the grim atmosphere. "So sorry to interrupt but I heard Misao was doing favours for the people who helped save the Kanagi clan!" She cheerfully smiled and sent a small glare at Kazuma. Trying to provoke a girl who had no chance against him. He was shameless. She paused awkwardly at the door and looked at the angry Misao.

"Wait. Did I hear it wrong then?" She went to Misao and sneaked a hand in her kimono and took her blade away. Misao would get in trouble if she attacked him in front of everyone. "Misao, do a favour for me, please? I need to get my clothes fixed! You'll help, right?" Misao looked at her with a shocked expression before slightly nodding her head. "Phew! I'm saved because I know abosolutely nothing about stuff like this." Then she half turned towards Kazuma. "Hey, Kazuma."

He looked at her, a little amused before she unsheathed the blade and threw it directly at Kazuma's heart. Wind formed right over his jacket and the blade landed on the ground with a clatter in the silence. She uncaringly turned back to Misao.

"That's what would have happened if you tried to attack him. No matter how much force. He controls the wind. The air that we breathe, the air that surrounds you. He could just freeze every object in its place with good control. Do you think you have any chance of actually taking revenge on him?" She had spoken it softly so that people who were more than a meter far could not hear it.

"Father!" Ayano almost squeaked out.

"Kyoko. What would be your reason for attacking an ally of ours?" She lifted an eyebrow at that. They took stuff way too seriously.

"I was proving a point. I knew the blade wouldn't hurt him. I mean, he defeated Genma for God's sake. Do you actually think a tiny knife could do what he couldn't? You're still underestimating him." She walked towards the open doorway before flicking Ayano forehead with her middle finger. "He's fine. No worries. No need for punishment. Ciao. Misao, come with me. You shouldn't be trying to get in trouble, specially now." She dragged a dazed Misao outside with her. Kazuma shrugged and was about to leave when Kyoko came back. She looked at everyone before focusing on Kazuma.

"Eh. Thanks for saving my life, Kazuma. I owe you." She gave a small awkward bow. She really wasn't used to bowing to anyone.

"You're not going to offer yourself to him, are you?" Ayano awkwardly asked. Kyoko looked at Ayano strangely.

"Why would I do that?" She then looked towards the direction she had come from, before nodded her head in understanding. "Ah. That's what she did. Nah. Not gonna do that." She waved her concern away. She wouldn't sleep with him under some kind of obligation. That would just ruin the mood. For her, at least. She looked expectantly at Kazuma.

"No need to thank me. I added the amount for the elixir in the bill." She almost smirked. How obvious.

"Well then, I'll have to do something about that, don't I?" She moved a little away from Kazuma and faced Jugo respectfully. "I would request that the amount of the elixir be taken from my account." This time, Jugo almost looked amused while everyone started at us.

"Are you sure, Kyoko? Its an expensive medicine." She quirked an eyebrow at him.

"Old man. I'm more than rich enough to pay for it. Plus, if my life is worth that much, I'd gladly give the money many times over. Shouldn't you know that by now?"

"Of course, Kyoko." She sent Jugo a small smile before turning to face Kazuma.

"I will not do any sexual favours. Anything else is a go. Okay?" She turned and walked away. She needed to talk to Misao.

She heard Kazuma scoff before he too left. She distracted her mind from Kazuma to Misao. Misao really hated Kazuma and him saying all that stuff about Takeya being weak and blaming himself for his death, probably didn't help. Oh well. No point worrying over spilt milk. The question would be if she should help Misao or let her follow her path.

Ayano couldn't help but envy Kyoko a little. Kyoko was like an elder sister to her, even though she was only a year older. Kyoko had always been strong but she rarely had time to help Ayano with anything. Ayano had looked down on the friendship between Kyoko and Kazuma. Kyoko, at the young age of fifteen, was quiet possibly one of the strongest members of their family and Jugo had adopted her for that reason, meanwhile Kazuma was the member who couldn't use fire-an embarrassment specially because he was in a family of fire-users. It wasn't proper for them to be friends, because Kazuma was weak. When Kazuma left, Kyoko had changed. She went against the wishes of the clan and went against any punishment given to her. Then one day, Kyoko and her father sat together and talked for a long time, and a few days later, she left too. Kyoko went to different branches of their family all over the world. She did a few jobs but other than that, she had no idea about Kyoko's whereabouts. Kyoko would drop by sometimes and help Ayano control her flames. She had also taught Ayano how to wield Enriha. Kyoko was respected and sometimes despised by the clan. After all, she was an outsider. She wasn't born into the clan. She was adopted, and only because of her ability to wield fire so skillfully.

Ayano didn't like it. She didn't want anyone to be despised that much just because they were not born into the family. It was wrong. They couldn't look down on the normal people just because they couldn't wield any element. And they shouldn't look down on the Fuga clan because they could wield wind and once been defeated by their clan. And then she thought, was Kazuma's case really that different then?


	3. Misao's grief

Kyoko wasn’t sure why, but she found herself scrolling down her contact list. She had been back to Japan very few times in the last few years but she had made a few friends during her schooling abroad.

She was considering calling someone to Japan. Most of them certainly could spare the time and money. She had done a few jobs for them too. But back in Japan, she found herself bored without anyone to talk to. America had been a more interesting place. She flicked over a few contacts before settling on one. She smirked.

There was someone who would make her stay here very interesting. She clicked the ‘call’ button and put in near her ear. As soon as she picked up the call, she heard an excited shriek on the other side.

“I was wondering if you would like to pay me a visit.”

-x-

Kazuma sighed. While fighting that demon had been quite fun, he hadn’t expected to meet someone like Kyoko. She was very interesting. And for some reason she was sensitive to auras around her. The rate at which the evil aura had taken to her body was ridiculous.

If he didn’t have the elixir, she would definitely have died. Unless she had something else in her sleeves. The proficiency with which she wielded the divine and the golden flame was something. He had never heard of people doing that simultaneously. She was some kind of prodigy then. That would explain why most of the Kanagi clan didn’t want to go against her. She was their trump card- their secret weapon.

He was slightly amused about Ayano and Ren following them so obviously. They clearly needed to work on their tracking skills. Maybe he should ask Jugo to pay him for training them?

-x-

Kyoko pouted. There was nothing she could do. Maybe she should take a job? But what kind of job? Maybe she could ask if she could take over one of the business branches in America? That was where she had spent more of her time, after all. Or she could go to collage? She pondered on these things as she walked through the busy streets. She saw a chocolate shop a few shops away and she immediately went in and bought a bag full of them. She loved chocolates, specially dark chocolate. They were so good.

She wandered through the streets when suddenly she felt a flash of anger and concern. She stopped, walked back a few steps and went inside an alley. She almost snorted at the hotels before she felt Kazuma’s aura flaring nearby. He was using his wind. She focused a little as she walked.

Sharp burst wind, to be precise. He was protecting himself from something. She narrowed her eyes and turned a corner. Gun shots rang out. Ren and Ayano were close too but they weren’t doing anything. She walked slowly towards them before she felt a familiar aura. Misao was here too. That explained everything.

Misao brought Kazuma here to a trap laid out by her and Ayano probably followed. She probably ringed Ren into it somehow. She heard grenade go off just after the gunshots stopped. Bullets were annoying but grenade did less damage than that.

“You wanna tell me what’s going on here?” Ayano’s voice rang out in the remaining silence.

“Ayano! Ren!” There was a brief pause. There she was. Misao.

“I’d hoped to avoid any witnesses but maybe it’s good that you’re here. It seems appropriate that a member of the family should be here to gather his remains.” She appeared behind Ayano and leaned on the wall on the entrance.

“His what?” Ren’s voice seemed surprised.

“You seriously thought that attack killed him? Didn’t I tell you that you can’t hurt him?” Kyoko scoffed. Ren and Ayano turned in surprise. “Yo.” She gave them a wave with one hand and popped a chocolate piece in her mouth. Misao turned back to the destroyed wall in surprise.

“Oh no. That’s impossible.” A tornado of wind appeared out of nowhere and the men with guns went flying. Kazuma appeared in the middle of the tornado as the men dropped like mosquitoes in front of him.

“Yeah. It’s much nicer here now.” Kyoko snorted at that.

“Show off,” she mumbled as she took another bite of a chocolate. She glanced at Ren to see him looking at her while Ayano stared at Kazuma. Oh yeah. She was too knocked out to see him fight that demon. “Want one?” Misao took out her phone and was about to call someone.

“Hey. Don’t even bother. I already had a talk with your rooftop sniper.” Kyoko slightly nodded. That would have almost succeeded if Kazuma had not been expected the attack and if it was anyone other than Kazuma. He controls the wind. What else do you need to know?

“But how could you-”

“Don’t feel too bad. It was a good idea, in theory. I was almost surprised. And weapons are more effective that your magic. Only, thing is, you’ll need more guns.” There was a slight pause. Her head shot up at the change in Kazuma’s aura. He seemed… sad? She stood up straight and put the packet of chocolate in her jacket’s pocket. “You’ve changed, huh. Did I make you this way?”

“Are you serious? You haven’t seen me in ten years. You think you know me well enough to even ask that?” He was sad. She looked away, feeling guilty.

She had thought he was purposefully mocking her like that. She had thought that because of how much he had seemed to change. She bowed her head. She had thought bad about Kazuma. She had thought him capable of mocking a death person’s loved one. Did she change that much? That she couldn’t even recognize Kazuma. She closed her eyes.

Yes, she had changed but she hadn’t really realized how much. Her hand clenched into a fist. She really was so stupid.

“Okay. Good… point.”

“Alright, you two. That’s enough with the chatter. Misao, you’re coming home with me. You’re gonna explain everything you’ve done to my father.” Misao angrily threw her purse at Ayano and ran away. Her heart ached slightly. Misao wasn’t throwing a temper tantrum that she could be amused by. She was suffering. Ryuya was dead so she could only take her anger out at Kazuma. She could have blamed Ayano because she was too weak but she wouldn’t. In her heart, Kazuma was the outsider.

“Hey! Get back here.”

“Wait!” Ayano and Ren ran after her and left her alone with Kazuma, in the solemn silence. Kazuma walked over to the purse and picked it up.

“She’s right. Ten… years.” Kyoko released her clenched fist before turning to Kazuma with a sad smile. She really claimed to be his friend? Preposterous.

“It’s not as long you think. Sometimes, time goes by really fast.” Kazuma looked at her with slight surprise. Maybe he had forgotten her presence. She really should tell him what Misao had thought.

“You know, during lunch, she thought you were intentionally mocking Takeya. She thought you were talking down someone she loved, who was dead.” She looked up at him. “In fact, so did I.” She was disgusted at herself. She just sighed, tired when he said nothing.

“I-. Sorry.” She calmed down. She didn’t have to make it about her. “I’ll take care here. You go ahead and return the purse.”

She turned and flashed away to the rooftop. The sniper lay unconscious on the ground. She would have killed him, if she had been in Kazuma’s position. She would have done it in a bloody way and made sure Misao saw it. She would have cruelly broken her will and left her there.

She was so heartless. So cruel. Was that how she thought Kazuma had become too? She silently looked at the unconscious man. That man was a proof that she was wrong. She silently hung her head and waited for the rain.


End file.
